News | Washington State Climate Office

Dec 8, 2022 | Climate Matters, Climate Variability, Seasonal

Whipsaw: From an Exceedingly Warm October to a Cold November 2022

As described in this newsletter, WA state experienced unseasonably cold temperatures in November 2022 after record warm temperatures in the previous month. OWSC has received a variety of inquiries about the rapid transition from summer to winter this year.

Nov 8, 2022 | Atmospheric and Oceanic Circulation Patterns, Climate Events, Climate Matters, Seasonal

The Near Endless Summer of 2022

After a very wet and cool spring, the Pacific Northwest had an unusually long stretch of warm and dry weather in 2022. The lack of rain was especially pronounced in western Washington, with many locations recording record low totals for the months of July through September.

Oct 11, 2022 | Climate Matters, Rain and Snow, Seasonal, Temperature

Timing of Seasonal Changes in the Weather of Washington State

This corner of our newsletter has recently concerned the seasonality of weather events in Washington state, and we continue in a similar vein in the present edition. More specifically, we consider average changes in temperature and mean precipitation on a daily time scale over the course of the year for selected locations in Washington.

Sep 13, 2022 | Climate Matters, Rain and Snow, Seasonal

Ready for Fall Rains?

This piece is intended to complement last month’s piece on the decline of the frequency of heat waves in WA state during the late summer. More specifically, here we describe how soon we can expect to begin enjoying our fall rains, based on historical data.

Aug 9, 2022 | Climate Matters, Extreme Heat, Seasonal

Frequency of Hot Temperatures in Summer

This month’s highlight is inspired by the unusually long-lasting heat wave in WA that occurred during the last week of July 2022. We were interested in how the frequency of hot temperatures, in terms of not just maximum but also minimum values, changes over the latter part of summer.

Jul 11, 2022 | Climate Change Report, Climate Matters, Extreme Heat, Rain and Snow

U.S. Climate Resilience Toolkit Climate Explorer

There is a large and growing number of web applications serving climate data. Notably, the U.S. Climate Resilience Toolkit (toolkit.climate.gov/ tools) has over 500 digital tools in its catalog catering to a wide range of users.

Jun 8, 2022 | Climate Events, Climate Matters, Ecology, El Niño/La Niña and Global Climate Oscillations, Marine

Cool Waters off the Coast of the PNW and in the Puget Sound

We have enjoyed a cool spring in WA state and perhaps it is no surprise that regional ocean temperatures are also on the cool side. A sea surface temperature (SST) anomaly map for a 7- day period near the end of May 2022 (Figure 1) shows negative anomalies off the coast of the Pacific NW, and in the central and eastern tropical Pacific Ocean (more about the latter below).

Apr 8, 2022 | Climate Matters, Climate Review, Rain and Snow, Temperature

Climate Classification of Washington State

Any Washingtonian can tell you that different areas of the state experience vastly different climates. But what terms can we use to describe those climates? Where are the boundaries between one climate and another?

Mar 8, 2022 | Climate Matters, Climate Review, Drought and Soil Conditions

PNW 2021 Water Year Impacts Assessment Released

The second annual Pacific Northwest (PNW) 2021 Water Year Impacts Assessment was released a few weeks ago. This was a regional collaboration involving researchers and state and federal practitioners, sponsored by the NOAA National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS), and led by OWSC.

Feb 7, 2022 | Climate Matters, Marine

Real-time Monitoring of the Climatic and Oceanic Forcing of the Waters of Puget Sound

Under the auspices of the Puget Sound Ecosystem Monitoring Program (PSEMP), with the support of the Puget Sound Partnership (PSP), a real-time system named the “Puget Sound Metrics Dashboard” has been developed to keep track of leading climatic and oceanic factors impacting Puget Sound’s water properties.